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“My dad is amazing. It’s funny, but I didn’t know that until I found out he was going to die.” – Walter White Jr. (Breaking Bad)

The World Health Organization recently projected that in the next few years, cancer would overtake heart disease as the leading cause of death in the world. Approximately 70% of cancer deaths occur in low – and middle-income countries, 30% of which could be prevented if better treatment were available. It is anticipated that in 2015, 84 million people will die of cancer. Recently we at Good Scout have come across these staggering cancer statistics through the unique medium of the show Breaking Bad.

The relevance of this issue influenced the conceptualization of the show, and had producers and creators desiring to make a positive step towards combating this disease. Breaking Bad is not only a show about the struggles of morality, but also an emotional illustration of the all too common and devastating reality of cancer. Set and produced in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Breaking Bad is the story of Walter White, a struggling high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with advanced lung cancer at the beginning of the series. He turns to a life of crime, with the aim of securing his family’s financial future before he dies.

In Season 2, Walter Jr. unaware of his dad’s “new career” launched a website to help raise money for his dad’s cancer treatments. In response to the episode, AMCtv.com launched an actual website in July of 2009 mirroring Walter Jr.’s website on the show. The site includes an opportunity for fans to help fight cancer by donating to the National Cancer Coalition (NCC). Since the launch of the site, more than one million Breaking Bad fans have clicked on the donation button and visited the National Cancer Coalition’s Website (us included), and nearly $125,000 has been donated to the NCC, the majority of which will go to lower and middle-income families around the world, like the Whites. Want to make your own contribution to the fight against cancer and have a progressive step in cause placement? Visit savewalterwhite.com now.